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Monday, 8 February 2016

http://www.telegraphindia.com/archives/archive.html

Battleship Bollywood

- Veterans decry ' tamasha of sorts' at military ceremonies

SUJAN DUTTA

New Delhi, Feb. 6: A series of changes introduced by
the military in formal public ceremonies have confused veterans who
worry that the new elements detract from the gravitas and solemnity of
the events.
The latest is the inaugural of the international fleet review (IFR)
where the Indian Navy saluted President Pranab Mukherjee, the supreme
commander of the armed forces, at sea off Visakhapatnam today.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, defence minister Manohar Parrikar and
the chiefs of the army, navy and the air force, Gen. Dalbir Singh Suhag,
Adm. Robin Dhowan and Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha, respectively, were
also on board the INS Sumitra, that was designated the "Presidential
Yacht".
Who else was there?
Actor Akshay Kumar and his son.

On board the ship, from which the President reviewed a fleet of 92
ships that included 24 foreign warships from 21 countries, Akshay
clicked a "selfie" with Gen. Suhag, the army chief.
Prime Minister Modi playfully pulled the ears of Akshay's son. The
actor proudly posted the picture on photo-sharing social website
Instagram.
Last evening, at the INS Satavahana, a land station of the Indian
Navy in Visakhapatnam, actor Kangana Ranaut shared the dais with Adm.
Dhowan, the chief of naval staff, and the chief of the Eastern Naval
Command, Vice-Adm. Satish Soni. Akshay and Kangana have been designated
"brand ambassadors" for IFR 2016.
At the event, organised mainly for visiting foreign naval personnel, Shiamak Davar's dance troupe gyrated to Bollywood music.
"Next time, it will be bar girls," a former soldier, Arun Govil,
wrote sarcastically on Facebook in a comment on a post that questioned
the "Bollywoodisation" of the military.
An international fleet review is being held in India after 15 years.
The navy believes that the occasion demands that visiting sailors be
treated as honoured guests and be given a glimpse of what Indian culture
has to offer. Not only did Davar perform, the guests were also shown
performances of classical dances like Kuchipudi, said navy sources.
The evening was a time to relax after the labours of the day and
before the next day's demanding routine. Today's events showcase the
Indian Navy's capabilities, said navy sources. They included, apart from
the steam past, a display by Marine Commandos, water skiing and
overflights by fighter planes and helicopters.
"As the Presidential Yacht passed between the review anchor columns,
each ship dressed in full regalia, saluted the President. Each ship was
manned by her ship's company, dressed in white ceremonial uniform. In a
moment that stood still in time, white caps were doffed in unison in a
grand salutation," a navy statement said describing the review.
This was the 11th fleet review for the President by the Indian Navy -
only the second that is "international". An international fleet review
is an assembly of warships without belligerent intention, says the
official brochure for IFR 2016.

A picture posted on Instagram by Akshay Kumar shows
Narendra Modi playfully pulling the ear of the actor’s son on board the
INS Sumitra during the international fleet review in waters off
Visakhapatnam on Saturday

In the first IFR in 2001, there were more foreign warships - 29, as
compared to 24 this year. The representation from navies, 54, this time
is significantly more. Most of the foreign navies sent delegations, not
ships. Also, the Indian Navy is hosting the Chinese Navy, with two
frigates, in such a ceremony for the first time.

Pakistan was invited to the IFR but did not respond. The waters in
which the IFR is being held are the same where the Pakistan submarine,
PNS Ghazi, was destroyed in the 1971 war.
There are conflicting accounts on how that happened. Some navy
sources insist it was sunk by Indian Navy depth charges. Others say it
hit the ground for not having mapped the coastline. It was not till some
of its debris floated that the Indian Navy knew there was a Pakistani
submarine lurking just outside Visakhapatnam.
The navy's current showcasing of India's military might and Indian
culture apart, military veterans are most indignant over the "Beating
Retreat" ceremony on January 29.
The ceremony owes its tradition to the end of a day's battle rituals
where the armies would return to camps picking their way through the
dead and the wounded. In India, "Beating Retreat" usually signifies the
end of the military ceremonies surrounding Republic Day.
This year, "Beating Retreat" included for the first time
"non-martial" instruments such as the sitar and the tabla, performed by
uniformed soldiers who were in a static position. They were seated in
rows on ramps. This is highly uncharacteristic for marching contingents
that play martial music in honour of the dead, to build camaraderie and
to enthuse soldiers for the hardships ahead.

Former vice chief of army staff, Lt Gen. Vijay Oberoi, was so aghast
that he wrote an open letter to the three service chiefs that was
titled, "Sirs, I am disillusioned and devastated".
Lt Gen. Oberoi lost a leg in the 1965 war with Pakistan and rose to
be vice-chief of the army in the years 2000-2001. He heads an
association of the war wounded.
He wrote that the "Beating Retreat" ceremony was reduced to a " tamasha" of sorts.
"I need not remind you worthies that traditions are the core of the
Indian military and flouting them on account of pressures/requests from
political and other bosses amount to letting down the troops whom you
lead," he wrote to the chiefs.
He said that soldiers would do whatever their superiors wanted "but
please do note that they will do so only if the orders are legitimate
and legal and not to please your bosses or others".

If military musicians adept at playing symphonies had to play popular
tunes, they should do so on an occasion that was not a military
ceremony like "Beating Retreat".
The former vice-chief was also angry that a marching contingent of
retired soldiers was not included in the Republic Day parade this year.
This is a particularly sensitive issue for the Modi administration that
this week notified "one rank one pension" but is still unable to
convince former soldiers that it has kept an election promise.
Lt Gen. Oberoi wrote to the service chiefs: "You may be fully
committed to your bosses, but why have you become such 'Ji Huzoors' that
you have now forgotten even your comrades in arms, who incidentally
were at least partly responsible for assisting you to reach the present
high appointments you hold!"

Dumped, navy corrects Bollywood script

OUR BUREAU AND AGENCIES

Actor Akshay Kumar takes a selfie with army chief Dalbir Singh Suhag and others on board the INS Sumitra

Feb. 7: Defence minister Manohar Parrikar today
addressed the discontent generated by the presence of Bollywood artistes
as brand ambassadors at the international fleet review (IFR) and said
actors Akshay Kumar and Kangana Ranaut had not been contracted by his
ministry.
A navy release issued on Friday had described the stars as "Brand Ambassadors" at the event.
Today, the minister said: "Ask the navy. Brand ambassadors have to
sell a brand. I don't think they sold anything. The MoD (ministry of
defence) has signed no contract with them. They were invited, but ask
the navy."
Akshay and Kangana were feted at the opening ceremony of the IFR on
INS Satavahana on Friday. They were taken around the venue escorted by
sailors on an open four-wheeler. Yesterday, Akshay and his son were also
on board the "Presidential Yacht" when the President was being saluted
at the review.
"The highlight of the event (the IFR opening ceremony) was the
presence of Bollywood stars Akshay Kumar and Kangana Ranaut, the Brand
Ambassadors of IFR, at the event," the navy statement said on Friday.

Actress Kangana Ranaut with Vice-Admiral Satish Soni at the international fleet review in Visakhapatnam

"Cultural performances by the Shiamak Davar troupe kept the
adrenaline at high levels while the Joe Barua Band, medley by Sameer and
Abhiruchi enthralled the audience," the release added.
Today, the navy officially issued a correction after Parrikar's brief
interaction with the media, and said the actors were only "guests".
A total of 54 navies are represented at the review, with 24 foreign
warships participating. Prime Minister Narendra Modi took the salute at a
parade on Visakhapatnam's Beach Road this evening from contingents of
the Indian and foreign navies, the state police and cadets.
Speaking before the parade, he said the Indian Ocean Region was one
of his foremost policy priorities. "Our approach is evident in our
vision of 'Sagar', which means 'Ocean' and stands for 'Security and
Growth for All in the Region'," he told the assembled contingents.
Modi said India was a "pillar of stability and growth" and it was
important for the navies to co-operate in fighting sea-borne terrorists
and pirates.

Earth’s highest battlefield

Tragedy must renew bid to end Siachen disputeThe 10 soldiers missing in the avalanche at the
Siachen Glacier have been declared dead. It is an indication of the
inhospitable conditions that many of the bodies will never be recovered.
But the Seventh Pay Commission does not seem to concur. It wants to
reward policemen and administrators posted in Guwahati with hardship
allowance that is nearly twice that for army officers in Siachen. About
1,000 Indian soldiers have died since the conflict on the earth's
highest battlefield began in 1984. More have died because of the extreme
weather conditions rather than bullets. Countless others have come away
with scars of frost bite. The Karachi 1949 ceasefire fire agreement had
understood the insanity of dividing a dangerous, inhospitable slab of
ice called the Siachen Glacier. It left the border undefined beyond a
place known only by its grid reference, NJ 9842.

In 1984, the Indian Army launched 'Operation Meghdoot' after it felt
Pakistan had designs on the glacier. Pakistan responded by rushing
troops and Siachen became part of a list of irresolvable disputes
between the two countries. Since then soldiers have remained primed for
combat at heights where ordinary human beings cannot survive for a day.
Every soldier comes away with physiological damage of some sort. But for
them, a posting on the ridges surrounding the glacier is the ultimate
dare in the service of the nation. Political leaders on both sides have
tried to end the confrontation but the Kargil intrusion led to a decline
in trust quotient. The Indian Army now wants any Indo-Pak pullout
agreement to acknowledge its currently held positions to act as evidence
in case of another 'Kargil'.

The latest tragedy on the glacier is the cost the two countries pay for
the obduracy of their political and military leaders. The seeds of a
withdrawal are present in the draft text of 1992 which is a public
document. It is not just for the sake of a confrontation that is
pointless. The shelling that continued till 2004 and accumulated human
waste have despoiled the glacier. It is time to start descending from
those treacherous heights.